FEW could picture butch New Zealand rugby forward turned television pundit Brent Pope writing children’s books.

A suicide bomber killed a police officer protecting a Shia Muslim procession in north-western Pakistan today, while rocket fire injured 11 worshippers at a Shia mosque, stoking fears of sectarian bloodshed as the holy festival of Ashoura builds towards its climax.

Gunmen attacked a Shiite mosque in a town north-east of Baghdad, killing seven people and wounding three.

Suicide attackers wearing women’s robes blew themselves up today in a Shiite mosque in northern Baghdad, killing at least 79 people and wounding more than 164, police said.

An explosion rocked a Shiite mosque in northern Baghdad after religious services today, killing at least 30 people.